Hey Rivers! Thanks for joining us at Reddit! Here are the questions I would be interested in seeing answered and I think many others will be too. Thank you for your time!
During the recording of the Green album, there was a meeting with the record executives that potentially changed the direction the album. Could you please tell us in depth what happened? Were the executives unhappy with the songs selected? Or the production? There was also a rumor that you were sick recording those songs and your throat was strained. Any truth to that? If so, how did they affect the recordings?
You debuted the DC demos two weeks after Green debuted. What was the reasoning behind this? Was this in response to how the label forced your hand with Green and you were more decided in doing things that may not make them happy?
What was your mindset when Mikey checked himself into rehab? I know that he had substance abuse problems and as such my question really isn't on his circumstances. It's more to do with what went on in your mind that lead to the situation to play out as it did where you ended up firing Mikey and bringing in Scott.
What really happened with Matt? There was the bittersweet reunion at Fullerton. But nothing since then. When this was brought up you responded that you two have your own special brand of dysfunction. Still for a lot of us it was Matt's presence that added a lot of personality to the band and we're still wondering what the heck happened. Some stories say that he missed band practice and so you had no choice but to fire him. Others say that you forced his hand by calling in practices without respect for how he wanted to spend his time. What happened?
What was the recording process on Everything Will Be All Right Like? How was it was it different from how you went about previous albums? How was it the same? After the reaction to your past three albums that band was finally all washed up (Raditude, Hurley, Death to False Metal), what was the band's mindset going into the studio? Pessimism? Fear? Apathy?
What are your feelings on the positive reaction to Everything Will Be All Right in the End? Do you feel the album has bought you more goodwill and capital to experiment with in the future? Or has it cemented what the fans are looking for in a Weezer album and you'll continue to give them what they want.
Have you considered side bands again, like Homie in 1998, to explore songs that may not be a fit for Weezer? It feels like over the past ten years you've used the Weezer label to encompass songs from every genre even if those songs may not have been right for Weezer. Do you feel side bands like Homie could be a conductive way to continue creating new and interesting songs that cater to your open creativity without the stiffling expectations of Weezer fans?
How democratic is Weezer now? It used to be that you decided everything to the last detail. How has changing Weezer from a purely autocratic Rivers Cuomo band to something more democratic changed the end result? How different would a purely Rivers Cuomo dictated Everything Will Be All Right in the End be from the version we received?
If the fans were open to it, would you be down to composing a purely Rivers Cuomo only album without any democratic influence from other individuals? The Alone albums were essentially like this though many of those were of low production and, I think you would agree, unfinished. Or is Weezer it and you're no longer interested in doing a solo-ish album like Pinkerton or Songs From The Black Hole ever again? From just one fan, that would be a tragedy.
What do you feel are the creative differences between your earlier works and your current work? A majority still feels Blue and Pinkerton are superior to everything you've done since and its just as clear that this haunts the band. There is a humanist element to Blue and Pinkerton that is missing in almost all your albums up to Everything Will Be All Right in the End. Pinkerton isn't heralded only because of how people relate to your lyrics and music, but because from an outside perspective it speaks to the human condition in a way that films like The Shawshank Redemption, Schindler's List, and Amelie do. Would you agree with this? In your mind what do you think people, fans and critics, adore about those albums? Do you chalk it up to simple nostalgia?
It's hard not to assume that songs like Pardon Me were written in response to RCB members asking for more honest lyrics. However it feels like although something like "Pardon Me" may be an honest lyric and statement, it isn't necessarily an articulate reflection on what it means to be human. The song is a personal statement by you, but said without any context, or sense of reflection on what it would means to be pardoned, listeners are left out of the loop because they don't know what you are asking to be pardoned for. Rather than leaving them curious, it only leaves them alienated. Could this alienation in your lyrics be one of the contributing factors as to why your other albums aren't held in as high esteem as Blue and Pinkerton? And is this the difference between why Everything Will Be All Right In The End has been received so favorably?
Is Pat pissed that he can't play guitar anymore live?
mostlyboredstudent8 karma
Hey Rivers! Thanks for joining us at Reddit! Here are the questions I would be interested in seeing answered and I think many others will be too. Thank you for your time!
During the recording of the Green album, there was a meeting with the record executives that potentially changed the direction the album. Could you please tell us in depth what happened? Were the executives unhappy with the songs selected? Or the production? There was also a rumor that you were sick recording those songs and your throat was strained. Any truth to that? If so, how did they affect the recordings?
You debuted the DC demos two weeks after Green debuted. What was the reasoning behind this? Was this in response to how the label forced your hand with Green and you were more decided in doing things that may not make them happy?
What was your mindset when Mikey checked himself into rehab? I know that he had substance abuse problems and as such my question really isn't on his circumstances. It's more to do with what went on in your mind that lead to the situation to play out as it did where you ended up firing Mikey and bringing in Scott.
What really happened with Matt? There was the bittersweet reunion at Fullerton. But nothing since then. When this was brought up you responded that you two have your own special brand of dysfunction. Still for a lot of us it was Matt's presence that added a lot of personality to the band and we're still wondering what the heck happened. Some stories say that he missed band practice and so you had no choice but to fire him. Others say that you forced his hand by calling in practices without respect for how he wanted to spend his time. What happened?
What was the recording process on Everything Will Be All Right Like? How was it was it different from how you went about previous albums? How was it the same? After the reaction to your past three albums that band was finally all washed up (Raditude, Hurley, Death to False Metal), what was the band's mindset going into the studio? Pessimism? Fear? Apathy?
What are your feelings on the positive reaction to Everything Will Be All Right in the End? Do you feel the album has bought you more goodwill and capital to experiment with in the future? Or has it cemented what the fans are looking for in a Weezer album and you'll continue to give them what they want.
Have you considered side bands again, like Homie in 1998, to explore songs that may not be a fit for Weezer? It feels like over the past ten years you've used the Weezer label to encompass songs from every genre even if those songs may not have been right for Weezer. Do you feel side bands like Homie could be a conductive way to continue creating new and interesting songs that cater to your open creativity without the stiffling expectations of Weezer fans?
How democratic is Weezer now? It used to be that you decided everything to the last detail. How has changing Weezer from a purely autocratic Rivers Cuomo band to something more democratic changed the end result? How different would a purely Rivers Cuomo dictated Everything Will Be All Right in the End be from the version we received?
If the fans were open to it, would you be down to composing a purely Rivers Cuomo only album without any democratic influence from other individuals? The Alone albums were essentially like this though many of those were of low production and, I think you would agree, unfinished. Or is Weezer it and you're no longer interested in doing a solo-ish album like Pinkerton or Songs From The Black Hole ever again? From just one fan, that would be a tragedy.
What do you feel are the creative differences between your earlier works and your current work? A majority still feels Blue and Pinkerton are superior to everything you've done since and its just as clear that this haunts the band. There is a humanist element to Blue and Pinkerton that is missing in almost all your albums up to Everything Will Be All Right in the End. Pinkerton isn't heralded only because of how people relate to your lyrics and music, but because from an outside perspective it speaks to the human condition in a way that films like The Shawshank Redemption, Schindler's List, and Amelie do. Would you agree with this? In your mind what do you think people, fans and critics, adore about those albums? Do you chalk it up to simple nostalgia?
It's hard not to assume that songs like Pardon Me were written in response to RCB members asking for more honest lyrics. However it feels like although something like "Pardon Me" may be an honest lyric and statement, it isn't necessarily an articulate reflection on what it means to be human. The song is a personal statement by you, but said without any context, or sense of reflection on what it would means to be pardoned, listeners are left out of the loop because they don't know what you are asking to be pardoned for. Rather than leaving them curious, it only leaves them alienated. Could this alienation in your lyrics be one of the contributing factors as to why your other albums aren't held in as high esteem as Blue and Pinkerton? And is this the difference between why Everything Will Be All Right In The End has been received so favorably?
Is Pat pissed that he can't play guitar anymore live?
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